Registration is now open for the 2018 Boulder MFT - with more than 30 courses offered by world-renowned experts in English and French, the Boulder MFT is considered an industry standard in microfinance training.

Once again, Frankfurt School is offering development finance online courses starting on March 1st. Choose one of the 10 Certified Expert courses on Microfinance, Risk Management, Climate & Renewable Energy Finance, and more

The Cooperativa de Ahorro y Préstamo Tosepantomin, which means "everyone's money" in Nahuatl, won the European Microfinance Award 2017 for its support to marginalized rural communities through housing construction projects, which include savings products, mortgages, and technical assistance. Álvaro Aguilar Ayón, Chair of the cooperative's Board of Directors, spoke with Portal de Microfinanzas about the cooperative's launch, their clients, sustainable housing product development, and the lessons learned along the way.

'Commercialization of social enterprises: Stemming the tide of mission drift'. Find out how to avoid mission drift when transitioning a social enterprise or microfinance venture into a for-profit organisation

This new brochure presents the background on the Award, outlines the selection process, the Award ceremony and showcases the Award winner (Cooperative Tosepantomin, Mexico) and the two finalists (Mibanco, Peru and The First MicroFinance Bank – Afghanistan).

The CAS in Sustainable Finance covers the areas of Sustainable Investing, Sustainable Banking and Insurance, Microfinance, Microinsurance, and Emerging Market Finance. The courses combine academic training and research with current business practices, while promoting technical, methodological and social skills.

Our Winter Newsletter is out now with: highlights of European Microfinance Week (EMW) and the European Microfinance Award; spotlight on Cooperativa Tosepantomin, winner of the 2017 Award plus an interview with Alavaro Aguilar Ayon from Tosepantomin; an outline of the e-MFP General Meeting of Members with an introduction to our new e-MFP Chair and Board members; an article on the new research center at University of Agder in Norway - CERSEM; a look at Making Microfinance Investment Responsible and EMW 2017 updates from our other Action Groups. All the latest news and activities from e-MFP and its members completes the edition.

Over 690,000 families totalling up to four million people living in six low-income countries stand to benefit from a new climate insurance programme launched by VisionFund International, World Vision's microfinance arm and Global Parametrics, a new venture funded by the United Kingdom's Department for International Development (DFID) and by the InsuResilience Investment Fund, set up by German development bank KfW and managed by Swiss-based impact investment manager BlueOrchard Finance.

Every two years since 2009, e-MFP organizes the European Research Conference on Microfinance in collaboration with European universities. The Research Conference is a unique event that gathers together high level researchers, academics, professionals and students ensuring that the latest research is disseminated to the whole microfinance community. e-MFP is launching this call for interest to find a host and organiser for the 6th edition of the conference in 2019.

A report published by GIIN reveals a range of available strategies used by investors to strengthen their ability to exit in a way that meets liquidity objectives while also ensuring sustainable impact.

How can MFIs reduce interest rates whilst ensuring their sustainability? During this Midi, organised by ADA and InFiNe.lu, the audience will have the chance to hear and interact with experts coming both from the regulatory and the MFI sectors, from Africa and Latin America.

Critics have landed plenty of punches over the long years of debate around microfinance's true impact on the poor. But to my mind, the industry's best response to these critiques has been to point to its singular success: Microfinance is "the only social innovation to: (1) reach global scale, (2) build a complete industry infrastructure, (3) tap into commercial capital on multiple continents, and (4) 'produce enough profit to generate actual controversy over the returns to social investments,'" as Grameen Foundation founder Alex Counts put it (paraphrasing a paper by Financial Access Initiative Managing Director Tim Odgen).

A refugee settling in a new land, a family buying a home, a farmer nurturing her crops — every person has different financial needs — and loans, savings, and payment services should help them solve the challenges in their everyday lives. This year, European Microfinance Week focused on the heart of inclusive finance — understanding and interpreting customer needs.

Katharine Pulvermacher and Stewart McCulloch spoke at the session, "The transformative role of insurance in African agriculture." In this interview, they provide insights on some of the discussions around this issue and the challenges in scaling up agricultural insurance for smallholder farmers.

NextBillion's post from Paul DiLeo, Grassroots Capital Management:Last week, I moderated the closing plenary of European Microfinance Week, exploring the question of where microfinance – and MFIs – would be in five or 10 years. Panelists came from different organizations with varying perspectives of the industry

During the closing day of European Microfinance Week, Imran Matin of the US-based nonprofit Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) stressed the importance of not just whether women will use financial services, but "what account ownership will translate into in terms of achievement." Foreshadowing a theme of the session, he added that "intra-household dynamics is very important and also particularly difficult to measure.

European Microfinance Week (#EMW2017), organised by the European Microfinance Platform (e-MFP), concluded Friday in Luxembourg, with a provocative plenary that asked where the sector is heading in the next five to ten years. The closing plenary followed two days of workshops and plenaries: one plenary profiling the three finalists of the European Microfinance Award 2017 on Microfinance for Housing and another that sought to critically examine one of the core orthodoxies of microfinance – that outreach to women clients necessary increases women’s empowerment. Entitled “Women clients ≠ women empowerment: beyond the numbers”,

The Cooperativa de Ahorro y Préstamo Tosepantomin helps marginalised rural Mexican communities with their residential housing building projects by offering savings and home loan products paired with technical support. The cooperative is also recognised for its promotion of eco-friendly building techniques.

The European Microfinance Week (#emw2017) conference opened today in Luxembourg, hosted by the European Microfinance Platform (e-MFP). A member-driven conference supported by the Luxembourg government, EMW continues to grow as one of the most important annual events in the microfinance industry, bringing together all branches of the microfinance sector, including e-MFP’s own members, to discuss trends, innovations, challenges and opportunities in inclusive finance in developing countries

Rural finance is on the agenda during European Microfinance Week. Far from the bustling financial centers of the city, people in rural areas have long been underserved by traditional financial institutions. While this is a problem for all rural residents, the lack of access to financial services is particularly difficult for farmers since it bars them from growing their agricultural businesses. We talked to Jonathan Agwe of IFAD to get his opinions on the challenges that rural clients face in accessing financial services, as well as the solutions to help reach them.

In the run up to European Microfinance Week our media partner Microfinance Gateway talks with Sandra Prieto from Habitat from Humanity's Terwilliger Center for Innovation in Shelter and Laura Hemrika from Credit Suisse about the upcoming session "Strategic Funding for Housing Microfinance."

Are you working in financial inclusion? Don’t miss European Microfinance Week taking place 29 Nov – 1 Dec, in Luxembourg. Every year e-MFP’s top event gathers close to 500 professionals from all over the globe and offers excellent networking opportunities and the chance to learn from your peers.

In the run up to European Microfinance Week 29 Nov - 1 Dec, our media partner Le Portail Microfinance features an article (in French) by Alexis Lebel, OpenCBS & Jacinta Maiyo, Pamiga on digital finance, one of the many themes explored at EMW 2017

Kashf Foundation, which is a pioneer in women centric urban microfinance, has undertaken a detailed scoping of women led sectors in the rural economy along with MEDA to create a suite of products and services which can work for rural women in Pakistan. In this talk Zainab will present facets of women centric product development and preliminary outcomes and challenges from the pilot.

Dutch development bank FMO has agreed to provide a long-term loan of JOD 5 million (approximately USD 7 million) to SME-lender SANADCOM, a spin-off company of Microfund for Women, Jordan's leading privately owned Microfinance institution.

In anticipation of European Microfinance Week, 29 Nov - 1 Dec, MicroCapital takes a look at one of the upcoming sessions "Investing in MFIs: Importance of Human Resources to Achieve Impact" with Rüdiger Meister, ADG International

Want to master microinsurance? Starting end of February 2018, Microinsurance Master is a comprehensive 10-week leadership programme in partnership with Pioneer Insurance, ILO's Impact Insurance Facility and MicroInsurance Centre. Participants 'learn by doing' from industry leaders through training and coaching.

In this Talk, Justin McAuley will detail a product that VisionFund has implemented to automate the application process for loan officers in the field. Drawing on data from over 80 sources, the technology uses an algorithm to create loan terms appropriate to the financial situation of individual clients.

Economically isolated for decades, Myanmar has only recently opened up to the global community. With this came a lot of discussion about this South East Asian country being the 'last frontier' of financial inclusion. Microfinance legislation was passed in late 2011, but what has happened since? And what does the future look like? As part of Financial Inclusion Week 2017, join speakers from the UNCDF and VisionFund Myanmar to discuss what's next for microfinance in Myanmar

Today, as our friends and colleagues across the continent mark European Microfinance Day, we would like to offer a view from the South. After all, e-MFP occupies a distinct place – we’re a platform for Europe-based microfinance actors who are specifically focused on working in the South as their core objective. Like an astronomer atop a lonely mountaintop, we find ourselves in the heart of Europe, yet our minds are focused on the world beyond. So what does European microfinance look like when seen from the South? Well, it is a bit like looking at the stars – the light shines bright yet comes from a distant past. Microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Europe look remarkably similar to the global MFIs of the 80s and 90s -- small, local organizations with a deep focus on lending to micro-enterprises while maintaining basic financial sustainability.

In India, energy access is a huge challenge; 80 million households have little or no access to grid electricity due to the lack of grid access in certain geographies. Providing quality, safe and reliable alternatives to kerosene and other traditional fuels means addressing two main challenges: distribution and affordability.

Veronica Herrera co-founded MiCrédito in 2004 with the support of the Canada-based development association MEDA (Mennonite Economic Development Associates). “Empowering youth is vital to see the change in Nicaragua that we seek” Mrs Herrera says. “I believe education, in addition to microfinance, is a powerful tool to […] empower youth” she adds.

Join Marina Kortenbusch has she explores the most effective ways to facilitate communication across cultures and nurture communities that support green development. Building on her experience of establishing the BFC Green learning and communication platform, Marina will share insights into building networks, suggestions for tapping into social media, and lessons for the future.

Our Autumn Newsletter is now out with: The three finalists of the €100,000 European Microfinance Award Great and a look at how e-MFP members are supporting access to housing for low income people; Update on European Microfinance Week 2017; Offsite Sessions - our events in Zurich and Utrecht; The InsuResilience Investment Fund - a Public-Private Partnership; BRS celebrates 25 years; Luxembourg Inclusive Finance Research Conference; plus all the latest news and activities from e-MFP and its members completes the edition.

The ADA Chair in Financial Law (Inclusive Finance) at the University of Luxembourg, Faculty of Law, Economics and Finance, organizes on the eve of the European Microfinance
Week the first Luxembourg Inclusive Finance Research Conference

Join Ndumiso Mpofu as he describes market solutions which were used to increase the speed of recovery for communities affected by El Nino. Ndumiso will also present a summary of findings from recovery lending in fragile African states from November 2015 to June 2017

The 3rd European Microfinance Day takes place on 20th October - The aim of this initiative is to raise awareness at European level of the existence and added-value of the microfinance sector in its fight against social exclusion and unemployment

Symbiotics has just published its 11th annual edition of the Symbiotics Microfinance Investment Vehicles (MIV) Survey. This unique study provides asset managers, investors and academia alike with the latest information of most of the world’s microfinance fund activity in emerging markets

e-MFP & NpM are holding a one day training for investors on green inclusive finance, prepared and delivered by Enclude BV, organised by the e-MFP Microfinance & Environment Action Group and hosted by NpM.

Join Microfinance Gateway on September 20th for a webinar featuring a conversation between a researcher from CGAP and a policymaker from the Central Bank of Brazil which will demystify behavioral research and show actionable measures for policymakers working on consumer protection policies

Rural Outreach and Innovation Talks provide an ideal opportunity to share experience on rural development projects. Each Talk lasts 30 minutes in total, consisting of a 15-minute presentation followed by a 15-minute discussion.

The Helix Institute of Digital Finance has released a new paper by Mike McCaffery and Annabel Schiff, "Finclusion to Fintech" which is designed to help fintech innovators understand the unique money management strategies used by low-income people in the developing world.

Over 150 delegates and speakers from more than 30 countries attended the 5th European Research Conference on Microfinance - if you missed the event, catch up on the main highlights in the conference report now out.

Following the success and positive feedback on previous trainings, e-MFP is holding two new trainings at the upcoming African Microfinance Week (SAM) taking place in Addis Ababa, 9 - 13 October: ' Training for MFIs: The opportunity of Clean, Resilient business: training on green inclusive finance for MFIs', 9th of October & 'Training for investment officers: Due diligence for MFIs venturing into SME finance', 13th of October

Twice a year BlueOrchard organises thematic breakfast meetings in Zurich and Geneva. The next events will take place on September 27th 2017 in Zurich and September 28th 2017 in Geneva. During these events insights into BlueOrchard’s recent developments and the latest trends in the impact investment space will be provided.

e-MFP is delighted to partner the 8th Microfinance Barometer released today. Convergences presents, in partnership with the National Federation of French Saving Banks (FNCE), MasterCard Foundation, the European Microfinance Platform (e-MFP) and Oikocredit, the Microfinance Barometer 2017, Convergences' historical main subject.With 132 million clients and a loan portfolio worth 102 billion dollars, microfinance consolidates its role a key lever for financial inclusion of marginalized populations.

The Alternative Finance Forum: Between Fintech and Social Finance, takes place on 5 October 2017 at the Copernicus Conference Centre (Warsaw, Poland). Gathering alternative finance experts, practitioners, policy makers, regulators and researchers, the discussion will explore the opportunities for expanding access, equity and gender balance in support of social and economic progress.

A special track on “Microfinance” will be included at the FMA 22nd European Conference taking place 13th to 15th June 2018 in Kristiansand, Norway. This is the first time a special track on microfinance is included at a FMA conference and is a unique opportunity to disseminate research among top finance scholars

Hosted by the e-MFP, SMP and Credit Suisse, this event will address the factors that matter in applying microfinance to ensure adequate, affordable quality education and how to effectively achieve scale in this area of financial inclusion. The panel will introduce the winner and one of the finalists of the 2016 European Microfinance Award which focused on Microfinance and Access to Education. It will also explore the perspective of investors and technical assistance providers who are key in growing the sector responsibly.

This new report from CFI and IIF examines how partnerships between mainstream financial institutions and fintechs are addressing financial inclusion challenges and expanding access to the formal financial economy for underserved segments of the global population, particularly in emerging markets

Women’s World Banking is holding its biennial 'Making Finance Work for Women' Summit in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, October 24- 25. The Summit will convene 300 participants in a variety of innovative sessions addressing the most important issues in women’s financial inclusion.

Members of the Council on Smallholder Agricultural Finance (CSAF), which includes several e-MFP members, today announced in their newly published State of the Sector report that they provided $682 million in loans to 765 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) during 2016

Interested in the evolving credit market for agricultural SMEs and the millions of smallholder farmers they represent? Register for the Council on Smallholder Agricultural Finance's "State of the Sector" webinar, which will take place at 10:00 a.m. (EDT) / 4:00 p.m. (CEST) on Wednesday, July 19.

ADA is an NGO which plays a leading role in the inclusive finance sector in Luxembourg and internationally. ADA is widely recognized for its work supporting the autonomous development of populations which are excluded from traditional financial services.

Now that three years have passed since CGAP and the Center for Financial Inclusion (CFI) at Accion published “The Art of the Responsible Exit in Microfinance Equity Sales,” this subject deserves a re-visit and perhaps expansion of the paper’s general principles into industry guidelines. As the financial inclusion and impact investment industries mature and grow, so does the issue of how investors committed to advancing financial inclusion can “exit responsibly” from the institutions in which they invest equity

Our Summer 2017 Newsletter is now out with: Great news on Luxembourg Government's continued support to e-MFP with the signature of a new agreement; Update on the response to call for applications for the €100,000 European Microfinance Award on Microfinance for Housing; Preparations for European Microfinance Week 2017; Offsite Sessions - our events in Paris & London; The Microfinance Industry: Revolution or Footnote? Lessons for the Next Ten Years - reflections form the recent workshop hosted by Lehigh University's Martindale Centre

Philippe Breul, founder of PHB Development, will teach in the French language sessions of the Boulder Microfinance Training Program, which will be held from 17 July to 4 August 2017 in Turin, Italy. In 2 one-week courses, he will share his experience and strategies in implementing digital finance.

PAMIGA is implementing a project to support the use of digital finance solutions in partner Microfinance institutions (MFIs), to ensure a sustainable growth in the MFIs selected, by reaching new geographical areas and underserved clients.

At BSHF we were very interested to learn about the European Microfinance Awards and really keen to hear more about some of the great practice being identified. We have been running the World Habitat Awards since 1985. In searching for and sharing the best examples, we have a lot in common with e-MFP. Our objective is to identify and highlight approaches to housing across the world which make outstanding contributions to people's living conditions. As a minimum we believe everyone should be able to afford their home, have access to basic services, and be free from the threat of eviction or displacement. This might seem like stating the obvious, but it isn't something that can be taken for granted.

This Midi will be dedicated to the female entrepreneurs of Africa. In Lomé as in Abidjan and Kigali, in an Africa ever more dominated by men, these women’s entrepreneurial task is threefold: they are domestic entrepreneurs first, then entrepreneurs of their future, and finally business entrepreneurs in their own society.

The European Development Bank (EIB) and the Global Development Network (GDN) are looking to recruit 10 researchers for one year fellowships under a joint programme in applied development finance. The fellows should be nationals of countries in Africa, the Caribbean or Pacific regions

Humanitarian crises pose a formidable development challenge. While the nature and incidences of these crises vary significantly, they affect tens of millions of people, particularly the most vulnerable

Demographic pressure and the youth bulge in the developing world pose a major employment challenge. This situation is exacerbated by insufficient job creation, scarce formal wage employment opportunities and vulnerability in the workplace. For these reasons, fostering youth entrepreneurship has gained importance in the global and national development policy agenda.

e-MFP is looking for a consultant to conduct a one day training for Investment Officers on ‘Due diligence for MFIs venturing into SME finance’ which will take place on Friday13th of October 2017, in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) in the framework of the African Microfinance Week

Can the know-how of German cooperatives – particularly in the field of renewable energy – be used for cooperation with our African partners? Can positive experiences with the decentralized energy transition be shared with African partner countries? How can cooperatives, municipalities and other decentralized actors get involved in a common effort with Africa?

Blockchain, Bitcoin, Cryptocurrency. In the financial inclusion community, we have been excited by the potential of new technology and its ability to increase access in the markets we serve. But what is this technology? How will it benefit the poor?

The GIIN’s 2017 Annual Impact Investor Survey is based on an analysis of the activities of 209 of the world’s leading impact investing organizations. Survey respondents collectively manage nearly USD 114 billion in impact assets

Read MicroCapital 's great nterview with Christoph Pausch, e-MFP Executive Secretary on Housing Finance and the 2017 European Microfinance Award on why was housing selected as the theme of this year's European Microfinance Award

Preparations are underway for European Microfinance Week, 29th November - 1st December 2017 and e-MFP is launching a request for proposals from its members for sessions which will take place during this year's prestigious event.

There's only one week left to apply for the European Microfinance Award 2017 on Microfinance for Housing. The European Microfinance Award is a prestigious €100,000 award which attracts applications from financial institutions around the world that are innovating in a particular area of financial inclusion. Presented annually, it serves two parallel goals: rewarding excellence, and collecting and disseminating the most relevant practices for replication by others.

Register now for great webinar on 17 May 2017 9:00 AM ET (U.S.) from Microfinance Gateway and RIM which features a practical methodology and a toolkit for microfinance institutions (MFIs) interested in developing a best practice risk management system

Housing plays an important role in household asset building – providing both a place of protection from vulnerabilities as well as a base from which to be economically productive. Even low-income people prioritize investment in improving their living conditions. The base of the pyramid is estimated to spend over $330bn annually on shelter. The question is why we lack financing for housing?

Time is running out to register for the 5th European Research Conference on Microfinance - one of the primary meeting places for academic researchers working on microfinance. Organized by the Portsmouth Business School, in cooperation with the European Microfinance Platform and CERMi, the conference will draw together ideas from Europe and beyond which tackle the inclusion problem

Deloitte and Mastercard have released a joint report titled ‘Leveraging digital to unlock the base of the pyramid market in Africa’, with focus on the waves of digital innovation in financial services. The report, released during the World Economic Forum on Africa (WEF), reinforces that digital technology is financially empowering more Africans

We're delighted to announce that on 2nd May e-MFP signed a new agreement with the Luxembourg Government for the period 2017 – 2021, which guarantees the financial support required for implementing our new Strategic Plan. This firm commitment will enable us to build on our achievements and further develop our activities.

The Burgundy School of Business will organize the 8th edition of its annual conference “Institutional and Technological Environments of Microfinance” (ITEM) on "financial inclusion" in Dijon, France on 7th and 8th December 2017

Drawing on BlueOrchard’s expertise, "Small Money, Big Impact" explains how microfinance works and why. It illustrates through the experience of individuals, facts and figures the worldwide impact of microfinance

We're delighted to announce the release of the latest European Dialogue entitled Investing in Tomorrow, presenting the outcomes of the European Microfinance Award 2016, on Microfinance and Access to Education

The School of Business and Law at the University of Agder in Norway invites applications for up to seven full-time fixed-term appointments as PhD Research Fellows in International Management, including issues in Microfinance

The conference is being organised by the University of Portsmouth, UK in cooperation with e-MFP and the Centre for European Research in Microfinance (CERMi) with an overall theme of “Microfinance and Financial Inclusion”

InFiNe.lu, in co-operation with VBDO (The Dutch Association of Investors for Sustainable Development) organises a masterclass on investing and climate change to share insights and best-practices and discuss the next steps institutional investors can take on this topic

We're delighted to announce our Off-site Sessions, a new activity developed under our Strategic Plan 2017-2021 that provides e-MFP with opportunities for more frequent touchpoints with its members and external stakeholders besides the European Microfinance Week.

I could not have been happier when I heard that this year the European Microfinance Platform is focusing on housing microfinance. As a microfinance specialist for the last 21 years—and the last 9 exclusively dedicated to microfinance products for housing—I have witnessed the growth potential of this sub-sector of microfinance, as well as the constraints and limitations to the expansion of housing finance portfolios, amongst which the most important include lack of adequate capital and insufficient knowledge on how to develop differentiated housing finance products. When we hear that: at least 1.6 billion of the global population lives in substandard housing; at least half of the global population—3.5 billion people—currently lives in cities; and 828 million people live in slums (according to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals), both funders and financial institutions alike should take note and pay close attention.

Cordaid Investment Management B.V. (CIMBV) is the subsidiary of Stichting Cordaid that manages all investments. CIMBV is an Alternative Investment Fund Manager registered at the Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM). We combine the unique ability to finance partners with grants, equity and debt instruments in selected countries across three continents. We have EUR 80 million of assets under management, predominantly investments in microfinance institutions (MFI's), small and medium enterprises (SME's) and funds with a social mission. Over 70 investees are being served worldwide

Climate Finance and the Social Development Goals will be the focus of this year's annual Impact Investing Conference organized by the Association of the Luxembourg Fund Industry (ALFI) in collaboration with the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN), the European Microfinance Platform (e-MFP) and the Luxembourg Fund Labelling Agency LuxFLAG

ESELA, an international network of law firms, legal experts, academics and others specialising in the law as it relates to social enterprise holds its annual conference on the theme of 'Teaming Up in the Middle: How Business and Not for Profits Jointly Create Social Impact', 28th April in Brussels

A recent report from the Asian Development Bank, Oliver Wyman and Microsave looks at the role that digital finance can play in accelerating financial inclusion, focusing on four Southeast Asian markets – Indonesia, the Philippines, Cambodia, and Myanmar

Members of the Council on Smallholder Agricultural Finance (CSAF) announced at their regional meeting that they have formally adopted a set of jointly developed environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles. These principles apply across the nine members’ loan portfolios, which in 2015 encompassed $597 million to 672 businesses purchasing crops and providing services to two million smallholder farmers in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

Financial Inclusion. Housing. How often have you seen the two concepts appear together? If you think rarely – you’re not alone. Housing finance is that mysterious niche that crops up from time to time, but rarely makes headlines in our sector. And that’s both a conundrum and a shame.

Cordaid Investment Management B.V. (CIM B.V.) is the subsidiary of Cordaid that manages all investments. CIM B.V. combines the unique ability to finance partners with grants, equity and debt instruments in selected countries across three continents. CIM B.V. has EUR 80 million of assets under management, predominantly investments in microfinance institutions (MFI's) and small and medium enterprise (SME) funds with a social mission and serves over 100 investees worldwide. CIM B.V. is looking for a Compliance Officer (32-36 hours per week)

Initial Public Offerings in microfinance tend to inspire heated opinions: Does investment boost the industry's growth, or compromise its social focus? NextBillion discussed the topic in a Twitter chat on January 30, 2017

This new brochure presents the background on the Award, outlines the selection process, the Award ceremony and showcases the Award winner (Kashf Foundation, Pakistan) and the two finalists (Fundación Génesis Empresarial, Guatemala and Opportunity Bank Uganda Limited)

Listen to the NextBillion podcast and on Monday, Jan. 30, these topics will be discussed in more depth in NextBillion’s first Twitter chat, featuring Kanze, Rozas and Microfinance Transparency founder Chuck Waterfield – join us at 10:00 AM EST at #MFICHAT

The objective of this assignment is to provide a better understanding of key challenges and obstacles faced by entrepreneurs, notably in accessing adequate finance to grow their businesses, in the following countries: Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam

Take 25.000€ crowdfunded, 150 selected micro entrepreneurs, a Renault 4L car and 2 dreamers. Mix it all and discover an around the world trip supporting micro and small businesses through microcredit! Come and meet the team on 1st March in Luxembourg

The European Microfinance Programme (EMP) recruitment campaign for academic year 2017-2018 has started. Launched in 2005, the EMP is co-organized by three universities: Université libre de Bruxelles, Université de Mons and Université Paris-Dauphine and five NGO partners: ADA, BRS, CERISE, Positive Planet and SOS Faim. Courses are held in Brussels, on the premises of the Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management.

Check out the e-MFP Winter 2016/2017 Newsletter for highlights of European Microfinance Week (EMW); an interview with Ms. Roshaneh Zafar, Kashf Foundation, winner of the 2016 European Microfinance Award on Microfinance and Access to Education

NextBillion took the opportunity of European Microfinance Week to talk with Graham Wright, MicroSave about fintech - How can microfinance institutions go about leveraging fintech in their products and practices?

Microfinance, a lead sector within the larger impact investing spectrum, has gained prominence from development-minded investors over the past decades. Initially, international funding into microfinance was generated largely from donor organizations, including public development agencies and private foundations. As the market gained traction, the role of private capital grew in importance as not only a means for microfinance institutions (MFIs) to reach scale, but also to increase their social outreach beyond what was possible with donor money.

Financial Inclusion Forum UK is excited to invite you to what promises to be a stirring and thought provoking evening “Digital Financial Services: Are we realising their full potential?” featuring Graham Wright, Founder of MicroSave and Anant Nautiyal of GSMA hosted by Citi on 19th January in London.

The 'Guidelines on Outcomes Management for Investors' from e-MFP's Social Performance Outcomes Action Group is one of the top 2016 publications featured in the Microfinance Gateway's 'Year in Review: Top Ten Publications of 2016'.

The ADA Chair is launching the first edition of its Certificate in Law and Regulation of Inclusive Finance from 16th of 27th january 2017. This two weeks of executive training aims to deepen the students’ specific knowledge and skills in the field of inclusive finance law and regulation, with a focus on developing countries ensuring awareness of the topic of law and regulation in the inclusive finance scene for regulators, intermediaries and other inclusive finance organisations

The European Microfinance Research Conference is one of the primary meeting places for academic researchers working on microfinance. Since the first conference in Brussels, Belgium, in 2009, and its successors in Groningen, Netherlands (2011), Kristiansand, Norway (2013), and Geneva, Switzerland (2015), the conference has been a unique platform for academics to exchange ideas, build and consolidate networks, give visibility to their projects and to identify gaps and different paths for new research

Frankfurt School of Finance & Management offers different programmes on Development Finance, which will help you to systematically and successfully develop your qualifications and to build your career while recognizing the social function of education

Join VisionFund International's next private dinner 'Empowering today's women for the women of tomorrow' with VisionFund International's Social Performance Director, Johanna Ryan, on 31st January in London.

The market size of investments in the microfinance sector by specialized financing vehicles has increased over five-fold in the last decade. This is one of the many high-level findings coming out of the recently released white paper co-written by Symbiotics and CGAP about the 10-year landscape of microfinance off-shore investments.

Microfinance conferences have offered a unique experience in recent years. In the world outside the events, the industry has been wracked by extraordinary upheaval. It has lurched from development sector darling to punching bag, as client over-indebtedness grabbed headlines, research cast doubt upon its anti-poverty impact, and skeptics gleefully used these events to call the entire industry into question.

European Microfinance Week is the highlight of the European Microfinance Platform (e-MFP) calendar and a major annual event of the microfinance industry, hosting high-level discussions by all sectors of the European microfinance community working in developing countries.The conference each year welcomes among the 400 participants much of the Platform’s membership, now over 120 organisations and individuals. This year’s conference was particularly special, being the tenth anniversary of e-MFP, and a perfect opportunity to reflect on how much has changed in the past decade, and how much there is to expect in the decade ahead.The conference, held over 16th-18th November provided focus to six main streams: green microfinance; investors, donors and funders; rural finance; social performance; and digital innovations and the 2016 European Microfinance Award topic of Access to Education.

EMW 2016 concluded Friday in Luxembourg, after having brought together over 470 opinion-leaders, top management of banks, funds and other financial institutions, practitioners, academics, analysts, raters and industry commentators to present key innovations, challenges and the work conducted in the previous year by e-MFP’s several dedicated Action Groups

As part of it's series looking at what's in store at European Microfinance Week, 16-18 November, our media partner MicroCapital talked with Lucia Spaggiari of Microfinanza Rating & Amelia Greenberg of the Social Performance Task Force from e-MFP’s Social Performance Outcomes Action Group

e-MFP is delighted to announce a new publication, European Dialogue No.10: Guidelines On Outcomes Management For Investors. The Guidelines are the result of the work carried out by the e-MFP Social Performance Outcomes Action Group

CERMi a multilingual, international research centre based in Belgium, is offering a full time one-year research fellowship on microfinance and SME banking, at the Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management (SBS-EM), ULB

The 2017 SPTF Social Investor Working Group Meeting will take place March 15 & 16 at the University of Zurich, Zurich, hosted by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), the Swiss Capacity Building Facility (SCBF), and the University of Zürich’s Centre for Microfinance

Our e-MFP Action Groups are gearing up for European Microfinance Week (EMW) where they'll gather for their annual meetings on 16th November and also share their latest findings in panels they've organised on 17th & 18th November. In anticipation of EMW the Microfinance & Environment Action Group and the Digital Innovations for Financial Empowerment Action Group have released the following publications:

Led by speakers including Laurie Lee (CEO, CARE International UK) and Josefine Lindänge Gutman (CEO, Hand in Hand International), the conference will explore evidence-based solutions to overcoming the lack of access to capital and training faced by women entrepreneurs in the developing world

This week marks Financial Inclusion Week. In support of this effort to highlight what Financial Inclusion means for the Platform, e-MFP would like to highlight the work being done in Cambodia by its members and partners, including ADA, BIO, FMO, Incofin, and Proparco, as well as by the MIMOSA Project.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has entered into an agreement with Citi to expand local currency lending to the microfinance sector under the Microfinance Risk Participation and Guarantee Program. Under the agreement, ADB and Citi will together facilitate up to $100 million of local currency loans to microfinance institutions in developing Asia.

MicroCapital previews one of the exciting plenaries of European Microfinance Week, 'Microfinance and housing, one brick at a time', in an interview with the panellists Rajnish Dhall of Micro Housing Finance Corporation, Mark van Doesburgh of Triple Jump and Daniel Rozas,

Last week saw two nearly identical financial scandals hit two very different parts of the world. One was the revelation that Wells Fargo, one of the leading US banks, had falsely created some 2 million accounts for customers who never asked for them and were largely unaware of their existence. The other was about banks in India secretly depositing 1 rupee (0.015 euro) into their customer’s accounts.

The 9th edition of the Convergences World Forum will take place 5 – 7 September 2016, in Paris. e-MFP is delighted to be the organiser of the session on ‘Microfinance & housing: The role of microfinance in providing access to housing’

The 2016 report assesses these countries’ financial inclusion ecosystems based on four dimensions of financial inclusion: country commitment, mobile capacity, regulatory environment, and adoption of selected traditional and digital financial services

A lack of data is a significant bottleneck for financial institutions and development organizations. The same is true for knowledge about a targeted sector, especially when working in agriculture and agri-finance

Tthe CSFI report takes a broader look at financial inclusion and describes the risks in the provision of financial services to people in emerging markets whose access to these services is either limited or non-existent.

WSBI announced a new partnership with The MasterCard Foundation to help boost financial access and economic development in seven African countries. The Foundation has committed $16 million over 5½ years to enable at least one million people to open accounts at banks in Côte d'Ivoire Mali, Morocco, Nigeria, Kenya, Senegal and Uganda.

The Better Than Cash Alliance 'Responsible Digital Payments Guidelines' identify eight good practices for engaging with clients who are sending or receiving digital payments and who have previously been financially excluded or underserved

MicroCapital features an interview on rural finance with Marina Kortenbusch, Business and Finance Consulting who serves as the Head e-MFP’s Rural Outreach and Innovation (ROI) Action Group and Josien Sluijs, e-MFP board member and Director of the Netherlands’ Platform for Inclusive Finance, which is also a member of the ROI Action Group

The symposium to be held in May 2017, aims to take stock of the theoretical and professional debates regarding agricultural and rural development, food security, and their reciprocal relations with overall development

Thin - Filed and No - Filed individuals and emerging SMEs find it difficult to qualify for loans from financial institutions as they do not have previous banking history. Credit bureaus traditionally used the credit history of individuals or financial data of SMEs, such as, balance sheets and bank transactions for credit assessment. However, the traditional procedure is not applicable to previously unbanked individuals and new businesses

e-MFP is launching this call for interest to find a host for the 5th edition of the conference. Interested organisations should submit a brief proposal and the deadline for submission is 22 August 2016

Check out the e-MFP Summer 2016 Newsletter for the latest update on the 7th European Microfinance Award 'Microfinance and Access to Education'; an article on 'Financing Access to Energy' from e-MFP's Microfinance and Environment Action Group

Alterfin is looking for an Africa Investment Manager to be based in Brussels, Belgium (full time), with frequent travels to Africa. This position involves responsibility for the development and management of loans to MFIs and POs in Africa, through the portfolio management of Alterfin and Fefisol

Back in November 2015, a press release briefly made the rounds, announcing that "Opportunity, Inc. . . . has entered into a share purchase agreement to sell six banks serving sub-Saharan Africa to the MyBucks Group, a Luxembourg-based financial technology (fintech) company." This generated some comments on LinkedIn and a blog by consultant Hannah Siedek, who recognized how unusual a deal this was and wondered if she should consider it "a good (or not so good) operation." But aside from this, reaction has been surprisingly muted

Social investor, Oikocredit, announced its social performance results for 2015. Result highlights include: Investments in low-income countries up 22% to € 132 million, Clients reached through inclusive finance partners up 24% to 46 million

The sixth edition of the Annual Impact Investor Survey from the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) is based on an analysis of the activities of 158 of the world’s leading impact investing organizations

Peruvian savings banks are taking the plunge into a high-tech initiative designed to boost financial inclusion. Called BIM, short for "Billetera móvil", translated as "Mobile Wallet", the unique national e-wallet system brings together 34 financial institutions – including those savings bank within WSBI member Peruvian Federation of Municipal Savings and Credit Banks (FEPCMAC) under the partnership called "Modelo Peru"

What opportunities can climate finance offer impact investors after the Paris Cop 21 Agreement to direct all finance towards sustainable, low-emissions, climate-resilient development? How can private investors adhere to this commitment and achieve both environmental and financial return? How can the impact finance industry reach sufficient scale to attract institutional investors while not losing sight of its original mission?

The 2016 European Microfinance Award 'Microfinance and Access to Education' is intended to recognise the role of microfinance in enabling access to education for children and/or skill-training for youth and adults to enhance their employment and self-employment.

The ILO Impact Insurance Facility and its partners are organizing a public symposium to look into successful models in agriculture insurance, and discuss key issues such as relevance for small-scale farmers and the role of governments to improve equity and sustainability of the schemes.

Positive Planet has completed the implementation of the Shea Project Phase 1 (2012-2014), which was reaching more than 15,000 women shea processors through capacity building on best practices of shea processing, microfinance and ICT with the aim of tackling the major issues faced by women shea producers.

IFAD’s multi-donor supported Platform for Agricultural Risk Management (PARM) is organizing a side event in occasion of the 12th CAADP Partnership Platform on “Financing African Agriculture and Implementation Support for accelerated Agriculture Growth and Transformation” held by AU/NEPAD in Accra, from 11 to 15 April 2016

FOROAGRO is an international event that will unite world experts to discuss and debate how best to promote various initiatives that ensure broad-based financial services for agriculture, food security, climate change

The Award is open to any European institution or organisation directly or indirectly involved in the financial inclusion of people excluded from mainstream financial services or with a limited access to them in European Union or EFTA countries.

Call for Tenders for the final evaluation of University Meets Microfinance II (UMM) –deadline December 7, 2015: tender description, technical proposal template and financial proposal template – Expression of interest due by Nov. 30th

Global microfinance markets are expected to grow by 10-15% in 2016, although growth rates will differ markedly between regions. This is the key finding of the newly released responsAbility Microfinance Market Outlook 2016

SPTF is pleased to invite you to a webinar that will share the findings so far from their joint project with UNHCR to develop guidelines for financial service providers seeking to provide microfinance to refugee populations

European Microfinance Week (#EMW2015) concluded Friday in Luxembourg, with a closing plenary looking ahead to the future of microfinance, 'Where to from here?", with Blaine Stephens of the MIX Market, and Marc Labie of UMONS.

Crédit Rural de Guinée (CRG) has been announced as the winner of the 6th European Microfinance Award, focusing this year on Microfinance in Post-disaster, Post-conflict Areas & Fragile States, for its innovative response to the Ebola outbreak in Guinea

The set of product catalogues aims at providing a simple but comprehensive overview of both the technical and financial requirements, and socioeconomic and environmental benefits of the most common renewable energy (RE) and energy efficient (EE) technologies

The EcoMicro Program, co-funded by the Inter-American Development Bank's Multilateral Investment Fund and the Nordic Development Fund, recently commissioned a study on The State of and Perspectives on Green Microfinance in Latin America and the Caribbean

The annual Microfinance Barometer which analyses trends in the sector has just been published (in French). This year, as there is a special focus on digital finance, Philippe Breul, Head of the new e-MFP Digital Innovations for Financial Empowerment Action Group

This month's MicroCapital Monitor features an interview with Severine Debbos of ILO and Jared Penner of Child and Youth Finance International on More Inclusive Finance for Youth: Scalable and Sustainable Delivery Models for Financial and Non-Financial Services

Climate change and poverty reduction are probably the two major challenges of our century. Developing countries, most vulnerable to the threats of climate disruption, are the first impacted by the effects of this phenomenon manifested by natural disasters

The International Fund for Agricultural Development, the World Bank Group and the European Commission are pleased to announce the upcoming Global Forum on Remittances and Development 2015 which takes place in Milan on 16-19 June

European Microfinance Week (#emw2014) got underway today in Luxembourg, with this year's attention on "Developing Better Markets", a key focus to be discussed in the context of digital innovations, investment, social performance and sustainability.

Luxembourg puts a strong emphasis on the importance of sustainable development through financial inclusion by bringing together key stakeholders from the public, private and civil-society sector around this common objective.

The 4th European Microfinance Research Conference will be hosted 1st - 3rd June 2015, by the University of Geneva (Geneva Finance Research Insititute) in association with the Graduate Institute, the University of Fribourg and the University of Zurich. A call for papers will be issued in May 2014.

Over the past decade, Africa has experienced unprecedented growth, with 5-6% growth rate at the continent level. However, this growth remains heterogeneous, fragile, insufficient and unevenly distributed.

CERISE has released a universal social performance assessment tool that integrates latest sector social performance standards. This newest version - SPI4 - enables its users to evaluate the level of implementation of the Universal Standards for Social Performance Management, including the Smart Campaign Client Protection Principles.

Incofin Investment Management and Frankfurt School of Finance & Management present the Report of the first EIB Rural Impulse Fund II Symposium in Africa. Through this publication, which provides insights and best cases about microfinance in the African, Caribbean and Pacific region, they wish to encourage future initiatives promoting peer-to peer-learning and financial inclusion in rural areas.